Time to rethink Canada in Afghanistan

More bad news this week. Yet more tragic losses of Canadian soldiers in Afghanistan.

The truth is that it's time for a frank discussion on the future of Canada's involvement in that country.

This has gone on long enough, much longer than world war two! What have we really accomplished for all of the human and financial losses in that country? The taliban remain a force [and growing rapidly!] and there remains no effective civilian government there.

It's time to cut our losses and move on. We did what we could. We fought honourably and courageously. This nation made sacrifices trying to help the Afghan people. But Canada and the rest of NATO have failed. For reasons unfathomable to us in the west the taliban and their mentality is still largely supported throughout Afghanistan. Burn down a school where girls were taught? Cut off a barber's head for shaving someone's beard? Local cleric orders firing squad execution on two young people for violating "morality laws" and regular townspeople carry out the execution? yes, yes and yes, sounds like a good plan. wtf?? but what can we do.

What's the worst that can happen if NATO just leaves Afghanistan? I suppose Omar and Bin Laden return triumphant to Kabul each riding a white horse in an Austria/1937 scene. Good for them.

We don't have to fight them with troops on the ground on their turf. We can and must fight in our own land both the war on the ground against would be terrorists; as well as the war of ideas against their militant ideology.

We've fought and won this type of war before against a formidable opponent. It was the cold war against the powerful communist propaganda machine and armies. We didn't invade and occupy those countries. They eventually collapsed on their own from within when the great majority of ordinary people wouldn't take it any more. Eventually the same thing may happen in Afghanistan and similar nations. But like eastern Europe, it has to come from the people of Afghanistan. We cannot impose it from the outside if they don't want it.